Chapter 42

Long Ge had a poor tolerance for alcohol but good manners, and he became drowsy after drinking just a little. Wu Di had a good tolerance for alcohol but a bad mood, and he couldn't handle it either after drinking just a little. Struggling to drive the car back to the jade cutting factory, Long Ge pulled Wu Di into the small house where they took turns on night duty, and both collapsed on the bed, falling asleep.

Wu Di had a dream, a very strange dream. In the dream, he transformed into a general clad in heavy armor, wielding an eight-foot spear, leading his troops in a bloody battle against the enemy in a valley. The battlefield was filled with the clash of swords and the flow of blood, and the piercing sounds of weapons colliding filled the entire valley. Suddenly, the stone mountains around the valley turned into huge pieces of rough jade...

Wu Di suddenly sat up, dazed for half a minute. The piercing sound of jade cutting gradually grew louder, and he finally remembered where he was. Checking his watch, it was a little past three, and Long Ge wasn't on the bed, probably already working.

Wu Di patted his head. If Long Ge was right, this first attempt at jade gambling with his own ability would end in complete failure. He smiled bitterly and got up, realizing that this path was not so easy, and it would be a long and arduous journey.

Wu Di was washing his face when Long Ge came in, smiling.

"Thought you'd be up by now. How about it? Do you want to cut that old elephant skin?"

Wu Di thought for a moment and said,

"Not yet, let me have a few more dreams."

"Ha ha ha, that's how all jade gamblers are! You haven't learned the good stuff, but you've picked up plenty of bad habits!"

Seeing Wu Di a bit embarrassed, Long Ge said,

"If you really want to learn about jade gambling, stay here for a few more days. I'll put you in the warehouse to look at the stones, then watch how they cut them, and compare with your own judgment. You might not learn much, but seeing more will make you less susceptible to tricks. What do you think?"

Wu Di was thrilled. After thinking for a while, he called his mother from inside the house, saying he was at a high school classmate's place and wouldn't be back until the next day. His mother didn't say much, just told him to drink less and to come back the next day because his father had already arranged to go fishing with some old friends over the weekend.

The courtyard was not crowded but very lively, with ten jade cutting machines lined up, all busy. Long Ge spoke to a middle-aged man, then led Wu Di to the back warehouse, pointing to the rough jade divided into several piles on the ground, and said,

"Each pile has a number. These will all be cut today. You start by watching here, and when the stones are taken out, go see the results. Remember, watch more and talk less!"

Wu Di thanked him repeatedly, and Long Ge patted his shoulder and left.

The stone piles in the warehouse varied in size, and some had people marking lines. Wu Di looked around; the numbers ranged from 19 to 32, and he was amazed at the business of the jade cutting factory. He remembered Long Ge mentioning that not just anyone could open a jade cutting factory. The town government, citing pollution, had centralized the jade cutting rights and then distributed them through bidding. Only those with connections in the area could open a jade cutting factory, which was why Long Ge dared to threaten Old Qin.

Wu Di approached the people marking lines, and an old man looked at him curiously. Wu Di quickly explained,

"New here, just learning."

The old man, having seen Long Ge instruct Wu Di, ignored him and continued discussing how to open the window, how to polish the stone, and how to mark the lines. Although Wu Di didn't dare get too close and some parts of the rough jade were unclear, he felt he had learned a lot after listening for a while.

Pile by pile, he watched the stones. When someone was marking lines, he listened; when no one was, he made his own judgments, then ran to the courtyard to see the results. By 10 PM when the jade cutting factory closed, Wu Di was hungry. Long Ge, seeing Wu Di covered in fine dust, smiled and said,

"Didn't expect you to be so dedicated. You barely responded when I called you. Hungry? Let's go home and get something to eat."

Wu Di followed Long Ge home, and his sister-in-law made him a bowl of amaranth and garlic noodle soup, which he enjoyed. The kind woman looked at him with sympathy and an indescribable expression, making Wu Di very uncomfortable. He must have looked like a spoiled brat or a fool to them. After all, losing over five million in the morning was not common in this town.

That night, Wu Di slept on a mat and woke up at dawn.

The jade cutting factory started bustling at 6:30 AM. Wu Di hurried to finish watching the thirty piles of stones and found the sun had already set. He quickly said goodbye. Before leaving, with the owner's permission, he took a piece of rough jade, about five to six pounds, as a souvenir.

Back home, he took a shower, ate the food his mother had left, and went into his small room to start verifying what he had learned on the forum.

After this day and a half of intensive education, Wu Di had a new understanding of jade gambling, finally moving beyond the novice stage and beginning to grasp the basics.

His father told Wu Di to go to bed early, as they had to leave at 5 AM. Wu Di agreed and went to bed, but suddenly jumped up, remembering the two hundred pounds of stone still in the car! He couldn't take it with him for fishing, but what could he do? After pacing for a while, he decided to just treat it as an extra large passenger!

Hearing the snoring from the next room, Wu Di took out the mysterious book and a magnifying glass and started reading the book's prompts,

Jade rough, high-quality glass type, yellow-green!

Wu Di remembered the piece of rough jade he had picked up from the cutting machine and quietly went out to bring it in, then used the book to stamp it:

Jade rough, flower green fuchsite type.

Wu Di was stunned. Could he really be the so-called lucky little superman? But the book could only tell if there was jade, not how much. Would the five million glass type be a loss?

After thinking for a while, he clenched his fist and decided, next week, he would go back to the jade carving village to cut that old elephant skin and see if he was truly a lucky little superman!

He didn't fall asleep until after 1 AM. At 4:30 AM, his father, who had already made breakfast, woke him up. Wu Dan also got up to join the fun. At 5:00 AM, Wu Di saw three old men waiting at the entrance of the residential area with their bags. Fortunately, the Land Rover had enough space, or it wouldn't have fit.

There were over a dozen reservoirs around Yudu, all within a reasonable distance. They were going to the Shayan Reservoir, a 40-kilometer trip that would take about an hour.

On the way, the old men casually asked about the large stone in the car, then started teasing Wu Dan, who was sitting on his father's lap, praising how much better it was to have enough money to travel in a large car instead of a small one. They arrived at the reservoir at 5:40 AM, and the group started setting up their fishing spots.

His father chose a spot next to a chestnut forest, where it was shaded in the morning and evening. The amount of fish caught was secondary; enjoying the process was key, so there was no need to sit in the sun. Wu Di was a hands-off fisherman; his father prepared the rods, lines, and bait, and he just cast the line.

His father prepared two hand rods for Wu Di, one long and one short, gave Wu Dan a 4.5-meter short hand rod, and set up eight machine rods for himself. The others also used a combination of hand and machine rods. After about half an hour, everyone settled down.

The first to break the silence was his father's machine rod. A clear bell rang, and the old man, who was leisurely smoking in the chestnut forest, quickly ran to the water's edge to reel in the line. As he reeled, he said to Wu Di,

"Good, it should be over three taels."

Their target was carp, and the Shayan Reservoir was full of them. The old men had experience; in late February and March, the carp were usually around three to four taels, and from April to May, they were one to two taels. Now, with the weather, using a machine rod was the only way to catch carp over one tael with a hand rod.

The fish was pulled up, but it wasn't a carp; it was a two-tael yellow catfish. His father said,

"This reservoir has yellow catfish, catfish, roundhead, pike, silver carp, and grass carp. Catching a large catfish would make the trip worthwhile."

His father reeled in the machine rod, baited it with worms, and cast it again. He then scattered some bait at Wu Di and Wu Dan's spots and went back to sit down.

Around 6:00 AM, it was the time when fish were feeding, and the weather was pleasant and not humid. Since his father's machine rod started catching fish, the bells by the water didn't stop ringing, and everyone was busy. Sometimes, small fish like minnows would come and ring the bells.

Wu Di's bait started working, and small minnows and sand rollers were continuously pulled out of the water. His father called these "not fish" and threw them away. After half an hour, Wu Di finally caught a carp worthy of the fish basket, with a yellow body and flaring fins. This was the legendary wild fish, pure and unpolluted!

The most exciting moment was when the float disappeared, and the most thrilling was the weight in your hand when the fish bit the hook! Looking at his father, who was tanned and thin, this was the joy of fishing!

Wu Dan played for a while and then threw down her rod to wander in the forest. Unconsciously, the sun climbed to the top of the sky, and the frequency of catching fish started to slow down. Sometimes, they wouldn't catch a fish for half an hour. His father took out some fruit for a snack. Wu Dan returned from her walk and exclaimed,

"Brother, look!"

Wu Di stood up and saw that Wu Dan's rod had been dragged into the water, already ten meters away from the shore. Wu Dan jumped excitedly,

"Quick, quick, get the rod back, it must be a big fish!"

His father glanced and started to take off his clothes,

"The fish is still there, but it's not big. Big fish would have already come off the hook."

Wu Di, seeing his father about to go into the water, quickly volunteered, but his father stopped him,

"You play, I always swim a lap when I come here."

His father pulled the rod over, and the fish, exhausted and about three to four taels, was easily pulled out by Wu Dan. Wu Dan cheered and jumped, asking Wu Di to help her change the bait, then threw it back into the water and went back to the forest to read.

His father swam two laps, and during this time, Wu Di helped pull the machine rod twice, catching a small carp.

As the sun set, the group packed up and left. Wu Di's family had the best catch, with about seven to eight pounds of carp. Wu Dan's one fish was the champion of the day!